


Too Much Information: Duran Duran in 1993

by yourlibrarian



Series: Concert Reviews [5]
Category: Duran Duran
Genre: 1990s, Concerts, Gen, Nonfiction, Reviews
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-14
Updated: 2020-03-14
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:55:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,475
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23132050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yourlibrarian/pseuds/yourlibrarian
Summary: Review of the concerts of July 14  in Tampa, 15th and 16th in Sunrise, and November 24th in Orlando, Florida.
Series: Concert Reviews [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1668118
Comments: 2
Kudos: 3
Collections: March Meta Matters Challenge





	Too Much Information: Duran Duran in 1993

If Duran Duran had anything to say, they couldn't have chosen a better time for it than 1993. Although it's been thirteen years since the band made its first appearance, it's only been ten years since they became a meteoric success. And like a phoenix, they were back on the scene in a big way. The only thing is, they had to look out for that unlucky thirteen number because it wouldn't take much to send them back to the obscurity they'd arisen from.

Their first two singles had done well, although "Come Undone" had stalled in the top ten and never seemed poised to be a big smash. At the time of the shows "Too Much Information" had yet to be released. But the serious airplay, frequent media appearances, and sales figures all seemed extremely promising. All they needed, really, was a very successful tour to complete their triumph. And initially, it looked as if they might have just that, with sellouts taking place all around the country. 

But if the first three shows of their concert tour were any indication, the band needs to work on its professionalism -- something you'd think they'd have in abundant supply by now. Unfortunately, their return to fame seems to have merely made them arrogant rather than magnanimous. The outrageous merchandise prices (a cheap 15 cent tie-tack being sold for $10) were an unpleasant hint. 

Rumor had it that the tour's opening date in Tampa was chosen as a "thank-you" to the city, which was one of the first to give "Ordinary World" extraordinary airplay. Yet the band was tetchy about playing a "dress rehearsal" to 50 winners of Q-96's special contest to see the band. The band zipped in to the Tampa Sun Dome around 2 that afternoon, waving in passing to awaiting fans, and then refused to go through a full set up performance, instead doing an elaborate sound check. Word was they were peeved with Capitol Records PR people who had agreed to the idea. Certainly the Capitol representatives themselves were hardly the model of civility to the 50 to 75 fans who were not lucky enough to be contest winners. Most all of the fans congregated by stadium doors, both to hear the performance and to escape the sun and heat. Yet they were twice ordered away by reps, the second time just as a vicious thunderstorm was threatening to strike. The wind was so severe that a Budweiser beer balloon being set up outside the stadium was taken down and not put up again, and some fans were practically blown back to their cars. 

Certainly the band made no effort to greet their fans, although le Bon and Taylor left separately afterwards. Le Bon reportedly headed to an orthopaedic clinic where he had an ankle checked after a mishap at a Mexico concert a week earlier. A clinic representative was needlessly hostile to a few fans who awaited him there, and security was so wary that even Anne le Bon was initially denied entrance backstage. It was the fans, amusingly enough, who insisted on her identity, brandishing copies of the band's recent album cover as proof. Considering how many people must have seen her prominent appearance on said cover, it was remarkable that no one seemed to recognize her at the concert that evening. Le Bon was informed of the event when departing for the clinic, but he appeared to be arguing with someone and waved only briefly to fans. Taylor was downright rude by zipping by in a van and leaning back in his seat so even picture taking was impossible. 

In sharp contrast to the band's standoffishness, was opening singer Terence Trent D'Arby, who arrived in plain view in his tour bus (dressed nattily in a tan snakeskin-print suit). He not only waved to fans as he headed backstage, but actually climbed up onto the embankment encouraging their approach, then signed autographs and posed for pictures for several minutes. 

He was reported to be equally gracious in Ft. Lauderdale, when fans staying at his hotel were given autographs, photographs and even his opinion on concert attire when asked. 

To be sure his Tampa performance was in equal contrast to the main act. While Duran Duran had an elaborate stage set up and various gimmicks during the show, his set-up was basic and relied on his obvious vocal gifts to deliver a punch. While reportedly a fine stage act, his moves could have used choreography as they were generally uninsipiring. But apart from taking the stage each night promptly five minutes after showtime, he delivered his set with good cheer and a humility distinctly at odds with the arrogance prevalent during the success of his debut album. Critical reviews of his new LP were positive; perhaps he'll handle a comeback better than Duran will. 

His second song was, in fact, "Wishing Well", and was followed by the enthusiastic "Do You Love Me Like You Say You Do", a marvelous vocal job on "Loving You", "This State of Love", "Billy, My Friend", the haunting "Delicate", the rousing "Dance, Little Sister", "She Kissed Me", and the enthusiastic closers "Jumping Jack Flash" and "Get Down Tonight". The last was not repeated down in Ft. Lauderdale, which was a pity as it was well received. The undimmed house lights during his hour-long Tampa performance were insulting, but the crowd was fairly attentive, although unmoved by his efforts at involving them in the act. But he was just as aware of his role in the proceedings down in Ft. Lauderdale (where he moved many to enthusiasm) when saying "We hope to do a good job of entertaining you tonight. Pretty soon Duran Duran will be coming on and I know you're all looking forward to that." 

His Ft. Lauderdale performance was similar, although he substituted a near a capella version of "Sign Your Name" halfway through the set while playing the keyboards. He was also distinctly relaxed with the crowd in the relatively intimate setting, shaking hands and giving out kisses from the stage. At one point he even stopped singing to borrow a woman's beer for a sip, and he did not shy away from eye contact with the audience. 

Unfortunately, Duran's sets grew increasingly tense, though this was not entirely their fault. The band seemed plagued with every sort of technical mishap possible to the point where, on opening night, the screw-ups threatened to overwhelm the performance. Even the concert programs had printing problems and were not available for the first two weeks. 

Their stage set-up was elaborate and intriguing. Giant silk screens hung on either side of the stage, one a rear view of a naked man reaching out, the other a woman seemingly passed out backwards on a bed with the word "Success" indicating her killer. The stage continued the dark theme with a circular screen hanging at the back center and two tiered risers with a catwalk to either side. On the left side a man sits impassively staring down. On the right a bloody arm emerges from behind a door, implicating a "Sin of the City" theme. Below it is a full scale British phone booth, and a small platform on which the electric cellist and two electric violinists would play. Up left was Rhodes' synthesizer. Back up singer Llamia would sing either on a platform next to him or one above him. In front of Rhodes was a large television screen. Lastly, next to the back up singers and drummer Fergus Durante, was what appeared to be either a giant safe or manhole cover. Across the whole front of the set was a giant plastic shower curtain. 

The band took the stage promptly at 9:05 with a confusing beginning. What sounded like the "Planet Earth" intro moved into a "Too Much Information" intro back to "Planet Earth". Rhodes, wearing a tacky multi-striped jacket over bright green pants with needless buckles appeared at the keyboards sporting lilac hair. Taylor bounded on stage in what was described by one fan as a "Mickey Mouse outfit -- all it's missing are the big yellow shoes." The red velvet pants, white high collar shirt and deep blue vest might not have looked so cartoonish had they not been topped by a bright red hair job. Le Bon alone looked more like the pop idol, wearing a snazzy blue swirl print jacket over black pants and making his descent to the stage via a ladder behind Rhodes. Warren Cuccurullo wore a tight suit of an attractive metallic blue. 

During the song a female mouth "bop-bop"'ed on the on-stage TV screen while images of Simon from the "Planet Earth" video appeared on the circular screen. The familiar song put the fans into an instantly appreciative mood. No doubt Llamia did as well, appearing in a skintight black lace body dress. 

The intro to a slow and undulating version of "Hungry Like the Wolf" had le Bon saying "tonight I'm going to tell you how I really feel about you baby." 

He encouraged much air punching at the song's close but it could be part of it was because he was leaning against the manhole door attempting to keep it closed -- a problem that was to continue through the rest of the show. 

Le Bon next introduced a song "about whether you really know the one you love." "View to a Kill" had a woman's feet walking across the TV screen in cheap video fashion. On the 15th he said the song was dedicated to anyone who had lost their job that day because "this song makes you feel like that." 

A video playing on the back screen of a woman arguing with the camera appeared to be Yasmin le Bon. 

"This is a song about something we all deserve to have if we can find it. The Ordinary World," le Bon introduced. Lighters instantly appeared and there was much arm waving during choruses, but le Bon's voice threatened to crack with strain. Nevertheless, the song elicited the most enthusiastic response at every concert with a forceful sing-along at the July 16th performance. 

Both Yasmin le Bon and Amanda Taylor were spotted at the sound check board during the Tampa show, so who le Bon winked to at the song's end was unclear. Families were out in force, however. During the 15th show, Tatjana Rhodes sat on stage, staring disturbingly out at nothing, and impassive through most of the show. The following evening Amanda and daughter Atlanta sat in the front row with the Cuccurullos just behind her. (Reportedly they were nearly booted out of their seats by ticket holders until a fan told the security guard in no uncertain terms who the couple was and insisted a mistake was being made). Yasmin le Bon and daughters Amber and Saffron were at the sound board during the Atlanta show on the 20th. 

During "Come Undone" le Bon exchanged his jacket for a wispy red print shirt and Llamia made the first of inumerable costume changes to a pink gingham check with a puffy lace underskirt. This was later stripped off to reveal a tight leather/spandex mini dress as she descended to the front between Taylor and Cuccurullo and allowed her sweet sounding voice an extended solo. The wriggling in this manuever, as well as her momentary singing to Taylor's crotch garnered plenty of attention on its own. But even without the theatrics on the 15th, she won the audience over. Le Bon, who went back to play next to Rhodes, sprinted forward and nearly knocked her over as he grabbed her about the waist and introduced her to the audience as "our princess, Llamia (endless name) if you can imagine that!" 

During the invariable break between songs needed for their setups, Simon was hurrying across stage just as a roadie was heading the other way and slammed right into him, knocking him over. Since the plastic curtain was drawn le Bon picking himself up off the ground wouldn't have been so noticeable had Rhodes not been laughing at him. 

The first surprise of the evening was when the band broke into the old 80's club hit "White Lines." The rendition was surprisingly credible, with le Bon delivering an enthusiastic and dramatic performance. Indeed, it varied little from the original and was a solid choice. One had to wonder, however, at the hypocrisy of crying "Don't do it" at the end considering the drug use in the band. 

Following the driving number was a rising orange "sun" on the back screen and Llamia appeared in a khaki suit and trenchcoat, lazily lighting a cigarette as she sat on the back riser. Le Bon began an interesting story (sounding suspiciously like the beginning of the film "Falling Down") of a young man stuck in traffic on Hollywood Boulevard, daydreaming as he turned off his air conditioner, rolled down his window and started to sweat. Llamia then began the cadence to "sing blue silver" and the band performed what must be one of its favorite numbers, since it's been included in every tour they've done. The video to this never released single played on the TV. The song was as lovely as ever and le Bon (whose mouth organ skills grow with each tour) did a nice job. The song closed in a fun fashion as le Bon began leading Taylor, Cuccurullo, and even Rhodes on a portable keyboard, up the risers and across to the catwalk Pied Piper fashion. Unfortunately the move hadn't been very well thought out, leaving them to retrace their steps before the next number. 

Drumbeats heralded the intro to "Girls On Film", and Llamia appeared in a skintight gathered long dress. This number was also reworked, a la "Hungry" style, sounding more langorous and drawn out. As the song closed, le Bon moved over to a covered object and seductively pulled the dark cover off, gathering the sheet up in front of him until a couch in the shape of giant lips was revealed. Llamia descended the risers to lie on it and keen while Taylor and le Bon bowed to her. Le Bon then crawled to the edge of the stage and sang the last verse, closing with "You've got me steaming up my bathroom, I gotta touch myself until I come and then it's done." This last part was particularly effective in the Ft. Lauderdale performances where he was only arm's reach from some of the audience. 

Rhodes was fumbling for his sheet music as Llamia, dressed as a nurse, wheeled a gurney out onto the stage. It contained le Bon who pulled the sheet off himself and began "U.M.F." She then strapped him into a harness and headband linked to glowing cables. What the purpose of this was, other than effect, was puzzling. Le Bon inevitably became tangled, sang the last verse with the headband slipping off at a silly angle, and was generally restricted in movement. In the meantime Llamia began brewing materials in containers set up on the gurney, which also sported, inexplicably, a stuffed dinosaur. At the end of the first verse during his "say please and sure enough, I'm making love to the ultimate mind", le Bon sidled up to Taylor and ran his hand up his thigh, to Taylor's pretended surprise. 

There was a cute moment as Llamia climbed the riser to stand beside Rhodes and pretended to play the keyboards two-fingered like a wind-up doll. (Reportedly, Rhodes emerged wheeled out on a wheelchair with his portable keyboard in Atlanta). She then returned to the floor to open the manhole cover, only to reveal a roadie, obviously not the intended effect. Although it was she who unstrapped le Bon from the cables, the roadies should have been introduced at show's end, there were so many of them making guest appearances on stage during the Tampa show.

"If you're feeling sleazy, get ready to show it girls and boys," le Bon called as an intro to "Notorious". On the 15th and 16th he mentioned they were going to play something for the crowd to dance to -- a better idea since otherwise he sounded like D'Arby, who had made such an introduction to "Do You Love Me." Llamia was racing back onstage in a screamingly bright orange jumpsuit and was still pulling on her gloves a minute into the song.

It was during this number that Taylor's bass strap started breaking. Le Bon helped him with it at first, holding it up while he reattached it, then turned it over to roadies crossing the stage. The song was much the same except for le Bon's added "you sexy motherfucker" at the break and departure at the break. He then began a crescendo of grunts/groans from offstage and marched back on to begin a coda by singing "Gonna do it again, gonna do it again."

"The Reflex" followed, receiving a good amount of sing-along. The next song however had a delayed start, for some reason, perhaps Llamia's costume change. For "Rio" Llamia appeared in a Carmen Miranda-like outfit. The technical problems continued however, as she sang to le Bon from inside the phone booth, mimicking their scene from the song's video, only to become stuck inside. A roadie had to come on stage and open it at which point she whirled out with the receiver rather sheepishly. Le Bon's harmonica solo was good but it was overshadowed when Taylor's bass strap broke again and he rolled his eyes back and said "Oh, man." He managed to reattach it temporarily, then sought relief from stage right calling out, "Oh, whoa, whoa!" to a roadie who had believed the strap fixed.

The concert seemed so unbelievably short it was wondered at first if the ending had been premature so as to work out the developing problems. But on subsequent nights the line-up was the same. In all the concert was just 90 minutes.

The band's departure from the stage was particularly dramatic in Tampa, as it happened so quickly that I barely had the chance to see a white object descending towards me before a much quicker witted fellow to my right leaped in front of me and snatched it out of the air. It wasn't until he showed it to his buddy that I realized it was Fergus' drumstick that had nearly poked my eye out. Apparently he was aiming for me because on the 15th I was nearly hit again, only the guy behind me snatched it as I ducked. One has to wonder at the wisdom of this practice.

After sufficient chair banging and yelling, the band reappeared, Rhodes in a see-through black chiffon shirt, Cuccurullo shirtless, Taylor in an open black shirt and le Bon in cut-off white shorts. Llamia took on Rhodes' jacket. An upright electric bass was brought for Taylor and they launched into "Save a Prayer", which featured an extended solo between him and Cuccurullo.

In the intro to "Too Much Information" le Bon began a speech about being in the dark with his mistress who "gives me everything I need. She gives me sex. She gives me violence. Late at night when I reach out to touch her black vinyl skin and the smoothness of her glass breast, I know this is the real thing. It's just me and my TV!" 

He then came forward on top of the TV set, and a video of him reacting to it played across the screen during the song. On the back screen a video of headlines played, and Llamia stripped off her jacket to reveal a strapless minidress with a newspaper print. She pretended to peruse a paper during the number as le Bon exhorted the crowd to "dilate your mind." The hapless ill luck followed them through the break however as, while walking past Taylor's microphone, le Bon's wireless mike cord tangled with Taylor's mike. Forced to stop and untangle it, le Bon knocked Taylor offline in the process. Taylor acted distinctly annoyed with him and got a new bass at the song's end. Le Bon meanwhile ran to the top of the riser to sing beside Rhodes instead.

Fortunately they only had one more number to go, and with the intro to "Wild Boys" the purpose of the endlessly opening manhole cover was revealed, as le Bon opened it and stepped out of dry ice smoke. He engaged in some rather excessive drama, at one point climbing up to the top of the phone booth to reach the catwalk. I half expected the thing to fall over on him. It was, nonetheless, a big finish, with the mostly unclad le Bon standing on the catwalk bellowing the finale and exhorting the crowd to chant as Taylor seemingly beat his head against the mock traffic light on his right.

Of course, with all those stage mishaps perhaps they all felt like banging their heads by song's end. It could have been that their bad luck spread as, of my four companions, three left the concert ill -- one sick to her stomach, another hyperventilating, and the third arriving home the next day with pleurisy.

The overzealous security and bad acoustics are only part of why I dislike the Tampa Sun Dome, (site of the 14th's show), as a venue. But I was delighted by the Sunrise Music Center in Ft. Lauderdale. Although in an obscure location, the center seems relatively new. Seating fewer than 5000 in a half circle around the stage, it's also a nice place to have 2nd row seats. It was, however, too small for the band's stage setup so there was nothing but a basic black backdrop. Llamia, looking splendidly fit in brown suede hip huggers and bikini top, was also spared her frantic costume changes.

Except for Taylor, the band sported new outfits, Rhodes in a much more becoming silver lame suit with black undershirt, le Bon in a natty black and white print suit and Cuccurullo in a neglible black mesh top. The technical problems however, now sound ones, continued with the very first bar when the intro to "Notorious", rather than "Planet Earth" sounded.

I missed parts of "Hungry" and "View to a Kill" as my too professional looking camera was confiscated, and a security guard escorted me out to the business office. It was all very pleasantly done and I was given a claim number. Fortunately, the security guard also returned me, since I didn't have my ticket and another guard was barring me from my seat.

As the crowd began to chant, le Bon asked "Is that a native Floridian language? Ooop, oop, oop? You're speaking my language! This is a song about something we all deserve but few of us ever really find. That's the Ordinary World." Unfortunately, during the 15th show he was just plain off key, harsh and seemingly unwilling to give up and let his back up singer carry the vocal. It was downright embarassing to hear his pathetic screeches at song's end.

It was possible keyboard problems developed in "Come Undone." Just before the solo, the earbuds the whole band wore (apparently to coordinate the sound) fritzed out audibly, immobilizing them all momentarily. Le Bon joined Rhodes to also play his keyboards, whether due to some need or a staging change it wasn't obvious.

"White Lines","Chauffeur","Girls on Film", and "U.M.F." passed uneventfully except that Simon's mouth organ didn't get broadcast during the "Chauffeur". Soon after le Bon told the crowd to "get on your dancing shoes babes" for "Notorious," he began having mic problems.

The "Reflex" and"Rio" followed, with more problems resulting in no harmonica sound. When the band reappeared on stage, le Bon introduced them and then they launched into "Save a Prayer". "Too Much Information" and "Wild Boys" then closed the show, after which they, surprisingly, came forward to shake some hands. As if anticipating this, many people had jumped rows and crowded in a pack in the front row, almost crushing one another.

What happened on the 16th is a matter of speculation. The band, staying seperately from the rest of their crew and D'Arby, zipped into the Sunrise Music Center a mere fifteen minutes before they were due to come on, even though the Cuccurullos, for example, had been backstage for well over an hour.

D'Arby's set was free of at least one unpleasant distraction from the night before. A skinny fortyish woman in an indecently short striped minidress stood up and attempted to get his attention during his entire performance \-- at least when she wasn't wandering back and forth, showing her tattooed buns to a security guard, and attempting to get his bass player to take a glass of beer from her. She finally was allowed to sit up on the stage which forced him to take it from her hand and put it down. She disappeared after the end of his act and was apparently setting her cap for the main act. On the 16th she was in plain and shocking view backstage, wandering about in a duplicate of Cher's outfit from the "If I Could Turn Back Time" video, also showing off her tattooed posterior. The outfit was completed by dangling garters attached to flowered stockings which barely showed over the top of her thigh high white boots. 

Duran Duran was a good twenty minutes late in starting their set and appeared the whole evening to want to get it over with. Simon, already straining for "Ordinary World," was hoarse before he got through the first three numbers. The possibility that the band had had a very recent vocal disagreement was augmented when there was a false start to "Come Undone". Apparently Cuccurullo was calling it off while the rest of the band plowed on, until he came over to Taylor and was obviously yelling at him and the other band members. Taylor listened impassively, head down, as Cuccurullo raged on in such a startling manner it looked as if he would haul off and slug his bassist. Le Bon, meanwhile, attempted to soothe the audience by saying sheepishly, "At least you know it's live."

The bad feeling remained through the show, however, with "White Lines", "Chauffeur", and "Girls on Film" proceeding with a noticeable distance between guitarist and bassist. During "U.M.F.", le Bon went to the edge of stage left to sing to the audience and urge them to clap. He obviously forgot he was so close to the strings platform and fell over backwards onto it. He apparently injured his arm for he was shaking it, and during a pause rolled up his sleeve to check it.

Whatever was said between the band's exit on "Rio" and their re-emergence on stage isn't known, but the mood was not much improved. Apparently the upright bass wasn't working and there was a heated conference between le Bon and Taylor in which Taylor was heard to say "No, just forget it, forget it, skip it." They did, in fact, skip "Save a Prayer" even though Taylor surely could have played it on his regular bass as it had always been done. In the confusion, the band never introduced their back-ups that night. Instead they launched into "Too Much Information" without the usual introduction, le Bon merely saying "This is a song about TV." There was also a change from the previous night when, during "he looks so perfect, just don't scratch the surface," le Bon had sidled up to Taylor and run a hand up his thigh. On this evening he merely draped an arm briefly about Taylor's shoulders. It marked the distinct lack of interplay during the whole set.

"A song is missing, isn't it?" le Bon asked later as an intro to "Wild Boys." It was done in the most perfunctory manner. Simon's hot pink jacket had been stripped so that he was down to just his rubberlike pants, and Nick in silver shirt and black suit. His sign-off was extended, as le Bon said "We'll see you soon, but not soon enough" and "Adios Amigos!" among other things as the band left the stage. It seemed, almost, like an apology.

Although in a later show on the 20th the stage set kinks were worked out, le Bon continued their screwed up streak by jumping off stage during "Wild Boys", being mobbed and being unable to return to the stage due to grabbing fans. For 5-10 minutes, security attempted to return him and the band droned on awaiting him. Reportedly, the move was better planned on its next attempt in North Carolina, but the wisdom of it during the frenzy of a finale was dubious.

Ultimately, the big disappointment with Duran Duran's early tour was not the technical screw-ups but instead the surprising unprofessionalism that brought it all about. The band never appeared for a sound check at either Ft. Lauderdale show, despite the obvious need for one, and there was no excuse for the near onstage brawl. But there were also missed opportunities in the "hits only" mentality of their song choices. With a whole album unsupported, (the previously released "Liberty"), the band had numerous choices for numbers. Nevertheless, they chose only their three singles (plus "U.M.F.") from their current album, ignored "Liberty" and "Big Thing" altogether (despite hits from the latter), inserted a cover tune, and added only "The Chauffeur" to their greatest-hits roster. Keeping the show short only made its limitations worse. While it may not have mattered much to the one-timers or bandwagon jumping members of the audience, it was a disservice to loyal fans for so much of the band's history to be ignored. 

As if all too aware of these problems, the second leg of their tour proved a welcome return to form for the band. Appearing in Orlando on November 24, the band ran through a revamped set list without the cumbersome stage apparel of its opening leg. Instead, a plain backdrop and a decent light show proved all the accessories the pop hitsters needed as they ran through one song after another in fair voice and with a good attitude. (Though Le Bon had reportedly ripped a vocal cord during the European tour, he seemed to have no more trouble than usual in hitting the notes.) Previously unperformed gems like "First Impression" (which Le Bon noted was from the "forgotten Duran Duran album") and "Love Voodoo" were particular highlights. Le Bon was sporting a very new wave blond crop, and Taylor and Rhodes had mercifully returned their hair to black and blond, respectively. The set was full of energy, the violinists had vanished, and the fans got their money's worth. Unfortunately, the stadium was half empty, perhaps because of the recent run through the state and the accompanying Jacksonville and Miami dates.

Duran Duran's moves through the years have shown them to be a band overly concerned with short-term success. While they came out with two strong, even classic, pop albums in the early eighties, they also made no bones about playing on their appearance to sell their music. Yet when this resulted in the label of a "teenybop band" (and a largely worshipping audience), they tried to avoid it while cynically milking their fans with every conceivable sort of merchandise. Had they been in less of a rush to get Seven and the Ragged Tiger to market, it probably would have resulted in a better album and they would have built the broader audience so important to long-term success. Certainly a second Rio tour of the U.S. would have been a smash and would have exposed a lot of good music to a wider audience.

Time and a lack of exposure took care of the band's audience problem. Loyal fans grew older and continued to introduce others to the band's material. New albums (the well produced Big Thing and the various solid tracks of Liberty) also allowed them to solidify their claim to being a pop band with tremendous potential. The new Duran Duran was a bold move forward in many ways, particularly lyrically. A terrific new hit brought a number of new people to concerts. The mix at the shows was as diverse as any performer could wish -- hip teenagers, loyal fans, middle-aged couples, a few young children, and a virtually even mix of men and women. But now that Duran had the audience they always claimed to want, they didn't push their new stuff, which much of the audience might have otherwise bought. Instead they sought to give the audience what they already knew. But, like many things, what we want isn't always what's best for us -- or a band looking for big success the next time around.


End file.
